Pages

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Everything Guide to the 2015 Epcot Flower and Garden Festival

It is time! The 2015 Epcot Flower and Garden Festival has begun today, March 4, and run through May 17th. This is the Festival's
22nd year. Each year the Festival offers beautiful gardens, topiaries,
butterfly gardens, celebrity presentations, the Garden Rocks Concert
Series, food booths, and much, much more!Today, I present to you this full guide to experiencing the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival.What's New?

Every year brings about some new items and this year. This year they include:

Topiary versions of Elsa and Anna from Frozen. They will be found in the World Showcase Plaza.

The fantastic food booths, known as Outdoor Kitchens are back. This year brings the Botana Botanico booth, which will be located between the France and Morocco pavilions and will features Cachapas with Farmer's Cheese, a sweet
yellow corn pancake, as well as a Coconut Tres Leches. Beverages will include a non-alcophic
punch, La Tizana, but for those who want an adult version, they can choose to add a spash of orange liquer.

The front entrance garden will feature topiaries of Chip and Dale in the “Goofy About Spring” floral vignettes. Topiary Goofy, Daisy and Pluto will also be
in on the fun topiaries
will be Chip and Dale taking a star turn in two whimsical Epcot front-entrance
“Goofy About Spring” floral vignettes. Topiary Goofy, Daisy and Pluto will be
in on the fun

Other
brand-new Disney character topiaries will be Chip and Dale taking a
star turn in two whimsical Epcot front-entrance “Goofy About Spring”
floral vignettes. Topiary Goofy, Daisy and Pluto will be in on the fun. -
See more at:
http://wdwnews.com/releases/2014/11/12/fresh-flavors-gardens-music-and-fun-on-tap-march-4-may-17-2015-at-22nd-epcot-international-flower-garden-festival/#sthash.PwYudmCp.dpuf

Other
brand-new Disney character topiaries will be Chip and Dale taking a
star turn in two whimsical Epcot front-entrance “Goofy About Spring”
floral vignettes. Topiary Goofy, Daisy and Pluto will be in on the fun. -
See more at:
http://wdwnews.com/releases/2014/11/12/fresh-flavors-gardens-music-and-fun-on-tap-march-4-may-17-2015-at-22nd-epcot-international-flower-garden-festival/#sthash.PwYudmCp.dpuf

The Flower Power Concert Series transforms into the Garden Rocks Concert Series.
Artists will now include acts from the 1960s-1990s. New acts will include the Gin Blossoms, Pablo Cruise, En Vogue, Jon
Secada, Taylor Dayne, and Little River Band.

Ten new mini-gardens will be added to the festival. They are:

Prehistoric Plants

Trial Garden

Disney’s Inside Out Emotion Garden

Health and Healing Garden

Pepper Fire Garden

Pizzeria Garden

Japanese Mini Garden

Pollinator’s Paradise

Bold Bromeliads

Shakespeare Garden

There will also be a southwest garden showcasing dessert landscapes.

Topiaries

The
topiaries are always my favorite part of the Epcot Flower and Garden
Festival. These plants, which are sculpted into wonderful works of art,
are always stunning and so incredibly detailed. It's amazing how they
take different plant substances to make these creative pieces. Here is a look at which topiaries will be found in 2015 and where:

The Garden RocksConcerts
feature bands from the 60s through the 90s. Performances take place at the
American Gardens Theater at 5:30, 6:45 and 8:00 p.m. every Friday,
Saturday and Sunday during the Festival. The concerts are included with
your Epcot admission. New artists for this year include the Gin Blossoms and Pablo Cruise. Here is the complete
schedule for 2015:

The
Festival Center is the hub for the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival.
This location (which is the former location of the Wonders of Life
Pavilion) holds special gardening workshops where you'll be able to hear tips from Disney gardeners. You'll also be able to shop for Festival merchandise, and more. The Festival Center will only be open on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Each weekend features hands-on
presentations at the Greenhouse Stage at 11:00 a.m. and at 2:00 p.m.
and live demonstrations on the Fresh Epcot Stage at 12:00 p.m. and 3:00
p.m.

In addition, guests can stop by the Intermissions Café, which features a fine selection of wine, cheese, wraps and salads.

Fun Fresh Weekends

Each weekend will be known as the Fun Fresh Weekends, but select weekends will also include a special extra theme. They are:

March 13-15: Spring into Spring Weekend Presented by Joffrey’s Coffee

March 16-17:St. Patrick’s Day Celebration at the American Adventure

March 27-29: Art in the Garden Weekend – From
11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., see nature through the eyes of “Plein Air”
artists, along with one-of-a-kind works of art in our Guest Artist
booths—all located throughout World Showcase.

April 17-22: Earth Day Weekend – April 17
through 19, meet specialists from Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Then on April
22, hear about conservation efforts to protect coral reefs, sea
turtles, sharks and more at The Seas with Nemo & Friends and see the
grand reveal of the finalized sand sculpture based off the Disneynature
film Monkey Kingdom.

April 24-26: Florida Fresh Weekend – From 10:00
a.m. to 5:00 p.m., head for the Festival Center and discover why
Florida is one of the top agriculture producing states in the nation!

May 1-3: See a stunning display of hibiscus in a wide array of colors at the Hibiscus Show.

Educate YourselfTours

Epcot Gardens of the World TourBe treated to fanciful floral displays on this 3-hour tour held only
during the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival on Monday,
Tuesday, Thusday & Friday from 9 a.m. to noon. A disney
Horticulturist will be your host on a tour of special displays and
award-winning international gardens. The tour costs $64.00 per
person, ages 16 and up. To book, call 407-WDW-TOUR
(939-8687).

English Tea Garden – Presented by Twinings
Enjoy the history and art of tea blending during a guided 20-minute
tour of an elegant English Tea Garden, featuring some of Twinings finest
tea blends. To register, sign-up in The Tea Caddy at the United
Kingdom Pavilion.

Outdoor Kitchens

Last
year was the first year for the Outdoor Kitchens (which were known as
Marketplace Kiosks). These Kitchens focus on serving small bites of
delectable treats and beverages with a focus on fresh ingredients.

The booths are similar to what you would see at the Epcot Foodand Wine Festival. There will be 11 kitchens total, found throughout World Showcase.Here is the full list of all the Outdoor Kitchens that will be featured during this year’s festival:

Don't forget to pick up your
Garden Passport. This is a special booklet that you should get stamped
as you visit the Outdoor Kitchens. Passports can be picked up at the
Festival Center, at any DVC Information Booth, or at the Outdoor
Kitchens.

Fun For KidsThe kiddos aren't left out during this event.
Quite a few new additions have been added that will appeal for the
entire family. They include:

Cactus Road Rally with Mater and Lightning McQueen: Play at this exciting stop located at Test Track
Walkway.

Mike & Sulley's Monstrous Garden:
Scare up some fun at this vibrant play area on Imagination Walkway.

Butterflies on the Go:
Don’t miss the chance to catch a glimpse of gorgeous butterflies as they flutter about at this magical stop.

Shopping

There will be quite a few areas where guests can pick up a fun gardening or Epcot Flower and Garden Festival trinkets. Special Festival merchandise is created exclusively for this event. Items include plush, mugs, ears, shirts, wind chimes, pins, and artwork. Consult your Festival Guide Map for shopping locations.

Miscellaneous

There
are also a few odds and ends you should know about. The Illuminated
Gardens and Topiaries are back. Each evening, enjoy your walk around
World Showcase just a little more as the topiaries are illuminated and
twinkle.

Look
for a new mini Disney Gift Card that is exclusive to the Epcot
International Flower & Garden Festival. The neat thing about the
card is that it has a bungee cord so you can wear it around your wrist
and simply swipe to pay for food and more. The card can be reloaded as
many times as you want at most festival kiosks.

The
Epcot Flower and Garden Festival is such a great event. It's the sign
that Spring is just around the corner and it really gets me in the
warmer weather mindset. There's a ton of things to offer everyone and
it just amazes me how much bigger this event just seems to be getting
year after year.

What do you look forward to experiencing at the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival. Let me know in the comments or on the Facebook page!

If you like this article, I shamelessly ask that you spread the
word! Share it on Twitter or Facebook...pin the photos on Pintrest, hit up the Google +
emblem...just let others know about us here! Also, make sure to LIKE
our Facebook page and find me on Twitter, I'm @RikkiNibs!

1 comment:

I've never been able to be at WDW during a special event before, so I am super pumped to be there for Flower and Garden Festival this year. Thanks, Rikki, for the best write-up of the event. Can't wait to see it all. Thanks for all you do!Pam in Albuquerque